Skanska sells Flat Iron project in Stockholm for EUR 85m

Skanska Commercial Development Nordic has sold the Flat Iron Building office project in Stockholm to Swedish real estate company Norrporten for SEK 850 mln (EUR 84.7 mln). The handover of the project is scheduled to take place in March 2010.

The Flat Iron Building comprises about 13,400 m² of modern office space at Norra Bantorget in the centre of the city. It has already become one of Stockholm's new landmarks as the architecture is reminiscent of the famous building of the same name in Manhattan, New York, Skanska said. The building comprises eight floors above ground and 70 underground parking places. The project is about 85%-leased and the tenants include the Swedish Competition Authority, the Swedish Equality Ombudsman, Hexagon, Tetra Pak and Offecct.

Work is underway on securing LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) environmental certification and the Swedish Building-Living Dialogue’s environmental classification for the building.

'This transaction demonstrates that modern and energy-efficient office buildings are attractive among tenants and investors. The project is also a prime example of urban development in which Skanska, in close cooperation with the City of Stockholm, has developed the area around Norra Bantorget with hotels, housing and offices,' said Jan Odelstam, president of Skanska Commercial Development Nordic.

Norrporten president Anders Wiklander added: 'For Norrporten, this is the first step in its establishment in Stockholm. Norrporten is complying with its long-term strategy of owning and developing properties in prime locations along the E4 highway, and the company’s presence in Stockholm now allows it to offer its customers prime premises in the capital.'

Norrporten owns and manages 138 properties in Luleå, Umeå, Sundsvall, Gävle, Stockholm, Örebro, Linköping, Jönköping, Växjö, Helsingborg, Copenhagen and Hamburg. The properties have a total floor area of 1.1 million m2, a rental worth of SEK 1.5 bn and a total worth of SEK 20 bn.

Skanska Commercial Development Nordic initiates and develops property projects within office, logistics and commercial buildings. Office operations are concentrated in the three metropolitan areas in Sweden, the Copenhagen area in Denmark and Helsinki, Finland. Development of logistics and volume commercial properties is conducted in strategic areas in Sweden, Denmark and Finland.